By Basil Atari
Edited by Lucy Kaskie
McGill has been blooming with Goyards. Like daisies, these bags have been popping up across campus in royal blue, forest green, and canary yellow. When I first took note of this at the beginning of the fall semester, I was shocked by the absolute ludicrousness of wearing a Goyard to class. It represented the clash of many cultures at McGill: haute couture versus sweatpants, international versus domestic, rice versus poor. I had thought that the Goyard was over by May of 2022, dying with the early adopters of the trend— but I was wrong. The first person I had known to own a Goyard (and the only reason why I had known of it) was a wealthy girl who had gone to my high school. She had recently went on a trip to France, toting a bright yellow Goyard when she returned to class. This bag seemed to be one of those things that only the upper echelons of society could identify— which I was not a part of. I certainly never expected to see or hear of it again, considering its price tag and its niche status that made it seem reserved for the elite.
Yet imagine my surprise when I spotted first-years in my economics class wearing those exact bags. What I once thought was reserved for the elite, slowly started to appear everywhere. Everybody either had one or wanted one. Even my TikTok page flooded with videos on how to spot a fake Goyard. This led me to believe that the Goyard bag had entered the mainstream, which is why it suffers from an abundance of fakes. Bags that become trendy are those that are most susceptible to the epidemic of counterfeits. There is a reason why there is an abundance of Louis Vuitton fakes and very few Vivienne Westwood replicas. People buy fake bags when they want to fit into a trend, displaying luxury of the haute couture they cannot afford. The increase in Goyard replicas deems the bag officially trendy. Therefore, I believe that one who owns a Goyard, real or fake, is easily influenced by mass media and marketing. When I see someone wearing a Goyard, it tells me that they are easily influenced by Internet microtrends— that they are ready to splurge to fit in rather than develop their own unique style. People who wear a Goyard rely on social media to make consumer decisions and often after making those choices, find the product appealing. Think of the House of Sunny dress that went viral in 2020. Everybody wanted it, allowing fake merchandisers to supply replicas and big fast-fashion brands to mimic its design. This exasperated the trend very quickly and led to the dress ending up in thrift stores or buried deep inside someone’s closet. People no longer wear it because it is no longer fashionable, despite spending a pretty penny on it. It’s likely the Goyard bag will be subjected to the same fate.
In many ways, the Goyard reminds me of the Longchamp bag. Everybody wanted one, yet due to its minimalist nature it was easy to copy and buy a dupe off of Amazon. Everyone did end up having one, removing the exclusive nature of having a Longchamp. You were no longer special or elite for owning one. The Goyard is a bad investment because of this. Most people do not want it because of its funky patterns or its colourful nature. They want it so that they can display to their classmates, “Hey, I’m rich, look at my expensive bag.” Once everybody buys a counterfeit and people are unable to tell them apart, the illusion is dropped, and the exclusivity is lost. The Longchamp bag is everywhere now, who knows where Goyard will be in a year?
If you are buying the Goyard to display social status and the inherent uniqueness that comes with it, don’t buy one. I argue that people will see your individuality through the development of a personal style that is irreplicable. If you are able to afford a Goyard, surely you have the money to discover what you truly want to wear. If you don’t have money and you bought a fake Goyard, no judgement. There is always the opportunity to develop your own personal style through a mixture of thrifting, small sustainable businesses, and, admittedly, fast fashion (but don’t over consume). Developing your personal style using these methods will allow you to seem genuinely fashionable— You will collect pieces that nobody else owns while demonstrating environmental consciousness. In other words, do not buy a Goyard because you want to fit in. That is juvenile and more importantly, part of a larger issue that is overconsumption destroying our planet. Instead, opt for a piece you genuinely enjoy. If it turns out that it is indeed the Goyard bag, go for it. But for that price, I expect to see you wearing it long past 2023.
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